Janie

I believe that Janie is never satisfied with her life, which is only human. Throughout the story Janie has always jumped into seemingly great situations but Janie just ends up dissappointed again. The great thing about this recurring situation though is that it does not make Janie an unlikable person, unlike the characters in the Great Gatsby. I believe, and so do many others, that every person is always looking for something better. Janie especially has the right to be constantly dissatisfied because her relationships, living conditions, etc. are continuously displeasing. The consequence to this goal is that it can never be reached. The idea of an unreachable dream again relates to the American dream which we looked at while reading the Great Gatsby. Janie is in constant pursuit of a better life but can't reach it, so she ends up taking every enticing opportunity that comes her way. This idea also relates to the first paragraph of the book. Hurston says that Men's dreams are like unreachable ships on the horizon of an ocean, which is exactly what Janie is doing in her life. But Hurston also says that women's dreams are much more realistic, they discard the unreasonable and especially idiotic dreams and dedicate their life to reasonable goals. These dreams can still be ambitious but they are not out of reach. The second part of the quote contradicts Janie's actions throughout the entire book though. She is a woman who is living her life like a man at that time would. She tries to chase the unreachable boat far on the Horizon. So I think the first page of the book foreshadows what is to come for Janie, in the end Janie will finally become satisfied with her life, for better or for worse.

My Friend I am Thankful For

I am thankful for my friend Erik Glascott. Erik is a really nice guy and a very interesting person. I've done a lot of things with Erik including lacrosse and even boxing (me and Erik boxed once and I lost). He is very funny and likes to laugh at a lot of things. Some people even call him giggles. One of the most interesting things about Erik is his family. He has a pretty large family led by his father who I like to call the Maverik. The Maverik's real name is Tim and he is a really awesome guy who scared the heck out of me once. Erik is very good at football which I think is cool, he was the starting center for Whitney and can block the heck out of people. My favorite memories with Erik are usually hanging out in his back yard, we make hamburgers, play catch, and crack witty jokes at each other. All of my friends have a grand time with Erik and I hope our relationship continues forever. Thank you Erik for being such a marvelous friend and person you truly brighten my day. Love you giggles.

Hemingway

Ernest Hemingway is an extremely talented writer and has a touch of elegant simplicity in each and every one of his stories and novels. His stories give each reader a look into the adventurous and very masculine side of Ernest Hemingway that not everyone can experience. Ernest Hemingway's stories and novels are works of art and will be great for generations, like Mark Twain. Ernest Hemingway is still a self centered and sometimes greedy man who compensates for a weird childhood by living a very unnecessarily crazy and erratic life.
In his childhood Hemingway never had a strong and masculine father figure, his mother dominated his parent's relationship at a time when men were considered superior to women. Hemingway's mother also treated Hemingway as a daughter as he grew up and at times young Ernest would be actually dressed up as a girl and had his hair cut like a girl. So as Hemingway grew to be an extremely famous writer he would take on things like bullfighting in Spain, swordfish fishing in Cuba, and other extremely masculine activities in order to compensate for the internal manly struggle Hemingway's mom instilled in him. Hemingway tried to create a super masculine aura around himself that today many people see right through, and he is disrespected for it.
Hemingway also writes only about himself and the struggles he felt after war and during relationships he had. As I read my first few Hemingway stories I loved them. The Undefeated was exciting and Indian camp was sad but mysterious. But as I read other stories I noticed a pattern in all of them, 80% of the stories are about a masculine main figure that faces some sort of sad internal struggle. This is the way Hemingway viewed himself so this is what Hemingway wrote about. He never switched up and diversified the characters he used, and this becomes boring.

36 Words

1) King loses millions, peasant buys island

2) War over, private given new arm

3) Spaceship is recovered, aliens are welcomed

4) Bears win, Jay cutler's foot reconstructed

5) New evidence found, innocent man released

6) Boy extinguishes fire, firework warehouse saved

John Proctor... Hero Or Stooge

I believe John Proctor is a hero. He used Puritan ideas and values to make the decision to kill himself. John Proctor didn't allow himself to be hanged just to save others, although that was a large part of his decision. He also "killed himself" because he wanted to follow the puritan ideals that each and every person he has come to know and love live by. He decided to do right in the eyes of the people he was saving and god. This makes John Proctor a hero instead of a stooge because he was handed a set of morals and followed them. He was not being stupid or naive, he was sacrificing one life and being honest in order to stick to the teachings of the bible and to save others.

Arrivals... There Goes The Neighborhood

About a week ago a large boat of strange looking men and women beached near the ocean. The strange people have a much different face to mine and their skin is a completely different shade of brown. We call these newcomers white people. When the white people landed on our shore most of the younger less white people ran to hide in the their homes. I turned to run until our wisest adult demanded to meet the white people's leader. The few that ventured off of the large vessel stared at the adult with quizzical looks. It was obvious these people did speak our language. They wore much more clothes than my people. One even wore a shiny chest plate with a golden cross hanging from his neck. We identified this man as their leader. One brave elder woman gestured for the white men to follow us to our homes. As we led the newcomers to our camp they looked at each tree and animal as if it were a strange fish trapped in a pond. At home the elders and newcomers gestured awkwardly for a few minutes until the white men went back to their boat. 

A few days later the white men returned with bags on their back. The amount of shiny objects they had was enough to leave me in awe. It was like nothing I had ever seen before. Every man in this white group held sharp shiny spears they called swords. Their leader pointed in the direction south of hear and explained to our leader (as best he could) that they were settling. Our leader wanted to object, but each of our people were too terrified  by the white people's odd technology. 

Just yesterday the white men came to our camp bearing more odd crosses. They even brought another white man wearing all black clothing with a white collar. They drew the attention of our people with more shiny objects. I am beginning to realize that these new people are very invested in the objects that they own. There armor clad leader explained in more awkward gestures that this cross was a big part of their life. It seemed almost as if the white people are trying to bring their way of life to our people. 

Later that night our elders explained to every person over the age of ten and explained that these newcomers will probably bring much change to our lives. They will bring many new ideas and objects to our life, whether they are good or bad. But our people cannot be changed by these ideas. We must stick to our way of life so that our children can live well and keep our culture alive. 

Me

My name is Owen Speth and I am 15 years old (almost 16). I play lacrosse at Whitney Young and plan on joining other clubs at Whitney like Model UN. My favorite subject is US History, and sometimes english class, if I don’t have to write too much.

I would describe myself as a generally nice person. I try to make friends with everyone I meet and I love to make people laugh. I can be pretty sarcastic and I enjoy cracking jokes with my friends.

This summer I had a lot of fun. I played lacrosse on a travel team and spent time with my friends. I went to a lot of movies, my favorite of which was Guardians of The Galaxy. I also went to Lollapalooza and North Coast music festivals. My favorite part of the summer was going to Colorado where I found out that I love hiking mountains.

I am excited for sophomore year. I hope to do very well in school, because I usually have trouble getting good grades. I am also excited for chemistry class because it is fun to watch things blow up. I hope to have a great time in English class and all throughout school.